Sulfur Containing Marine Bioactives

Sulfur is an essential element for all living organisms and is required by algae, plants, fungi, animals, and humans for growth and development. It is present in a variety of biomolecules involved in many biological functions, including the maintenance of cell redox homeostasis, defense, and detoxifying processes. The alteration of sulfur compound metabolism may lead to human diseases as well as to plant and animal pathologies. The marine environment, which is characterized by a high biodiversity of species and a great chemical diversity, represents a great potential source of bioactive sulfur molecules. A broad range of biologically active sulfur compounds with unique structures and pharmacological properties have been reported to occur in marine organisms, from amino acids to different sulfated derivatives. Great attention is also focused on sulfur metabolites in the marine microbial world in relation to the global sulfur cycle. The aim of this Special Issue is to present existing knowledge and recent studies on sulfur-containing marine bioactive compounds in different biological systems. Attention is also focused on metabolites active at the ecological level.

Sulfur is an essential element for all living organisms and is required by algae, plants, fungi, animals, and humans for growth and development. It is present in a variety of biomolecules involved in many biological functions, including the maintenance of cell redox homeostasis, defense, and detoxifying processes. The alteration of sulfur compound metabolism may lead to human diseases as well as to plant and animal pathologies. The marine environment, which is characterized by a high biodiversity of species and a great chemical diversity, represents a great potential source of bioactive sulfur molecules. A broad range of biologically active sulfur compounds with unique structures and pharmacological properties have been reported to occur in marine organisms, from amino acids to different sulfated derivatives. Great attention is also focused on sulfur metabolites in the marine microbial world in relation to the global sulfur cycle. The aim of this Special Issue is to present existing knowledge and recent studies on sulfur-containing marine bioactive compounds in different biological systems. Attention is also focused on metabolites active at the ecological level.

Biotechnology may be defined as the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of materials by biological agents to provide goods and services (Bullet al. , 1982, p. 21) or as any technique that uses living organisms (or parts of organisms) to make or modify products, to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific use (OTC, 1988). In line with these broad definitions we can consider marine biotechnology as the use of marine organisms or their constituents for useful purposes in a controlled fashion. This series will explore a range of scientific advances in support of marine biotechnology. It will provide information on advances in three categories: (1) basic knowledge, (2) ap plied research and development, and (3) commercial and institutional issues. We hope the presentation of the topics will generate interest and interaction among readers in the academic world, government, and industry. This first volume examines chemical and biological properties of some natural products that are useful or potentially useful in research and in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. One chapter describes a system for producing such substances on a large scale. Biotechnology incorporates molecular biology in order to go beyond tradi tional biochemical technology such as the production of antibiotic drugs from bacterial cultures in bioreactors. Development of the technology for production of antibiotics in this way resulted from fundamental advances in chemistry, phar macology, microbiology, and biochemical engineering.

Natural products continue to serve as sources for the development of new medicines. There is currently a revival of interest in the discovery of bioactive compounds with new chemical structures from natural sources, largely due to the fact that synthetic libraries have not yielded the expected number of developmental candidates in the pharmaceutical industry during the last decade. In addition, the emergence of clinically relevant pathogens that are becoming increasingly resistant to currently used medicines strengthens the notion that natural product research is urgently required. Considering the fact that almost 10% of bioactive compounds are of microbial origin, and that marine microorganisms are relatively poorly studied compared to their terrestrial relatives, marine microorganisms are regarded as the most potential-laden resource for drug discovery.

Bioactive Marine Natural Products is the first book available that covers all aspects of bioactive marine natural products. It fills the void in the literature for bioactive marine natural products. The book covers various aspects of marine natural products and it is hoped that all the major classes of bioactive compounds are included. Different classes of marine organisms and the separation and isolation techniques are discussed. The chemistry and biology of marine toxins, peptides, alkaloids, nucleosides and prostanoids are discussed in detail. Biological, toxicological and clinical evaluations are also dealt with to ensure that the book may be adopted at any stage by any practicing organic chemist or biologist, working in academia or in R and D divisions of pharmaceutical companies. Each chapter in the book includes an abstract to highlight the major points discussed in the text and concluding remarks are given. References to books, monographs, review articles and original papers are provided at the end of each chapter.

This book describes the recent advances in natural product chemistry and biodiversity in the Red Sea. All previous marine natural products isolated from different Red Sea organisms and microbes were collected in a comprehensive review. Additionally, newly discovered marine natural products and their biological activities are described.

The aim and scope of this book is to highlight the sources, isolation, characterization and applications of bioactive compounds from the marine environment and to discuss how marine bioactive compounds represent a major market application in food and other industries. It discusses sustainable marine resources of macroalgal origin and gives examples of bioactive compounds isolated from these and other resources, including marine by-product and fisheries waste streams. In addition, it looks at the importance of correct taxonomic characterization.